News & Features Archive

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Supporters of medical marijuana face a tough road in Minnesota where Gov. Mark Dayton has said he won't sign anything relaxing the state's drug laws without the backing of law enforcement officials, who are showing no signs of budging.
(12/12/2012)

Reports of child abuse and neglect have dropped nationwide for the fifth consecutive year, and abuse-related child fatalities also are at a five-year low, according to new federal statistics.
(12/12/2012)

With Spaceport America nearly complete but still mostly empty, a Virgin Galactic official says the company will reassess its agreement if New Mexico lawmakers don't pass liability exemption laws for its suppliers.
(12/12/2012)

Producer John Biewen and other guests participate in a live video conversation following Biewen's "Little War on the Prairie" documentary about the U.S.-Dakota War, and how to teach students about that event.

St. James resident Irma Marquez this month became one of the earliest Latinos in the nation to received deferred status allowing her legally to stay in the United States for two years and to find work. Acceptance marked a milestone in a long journey, one that still leaves her with challenges.

Rick Nelson, restaurant critic and food writer for the Star Tribune, is back on The Daily Circuit to talk about places to eat, drink and be merry this month. We'll look at the best places for holiday dining and some of the new restaurants in town you should check out.

Several health care-related matters await lawmakers as the state moves to implement the federal Affordable Care Act by its 2014 deadline. We'll discuss whether the state needs or can afford a Basic Health Plan to help residents afford insurance.

Jaime Villalaz and Lyle Danielson didn't know each other until they started working on a community garden that is helping Long Prairie Latino residents build a farmers cooperative and bridging a town racial gap.

'Left Behind: Dropping Out' explores the reasons kids drop out of school and what can be done about it. The special is part of American Graduate: Let's Make it Happen, a public media initiative supported by the CPB. Hosted by Andrea Seabrook for WNPR and PRX.

House Speaker John Boehner said Wednesday that "serious differences" remain between him and President Barack Obama in negotiations on averting automatic spending cuts and tax increases that economists fear could send the U.S. economy over a "fiscal cliff."

Today on the MPR News Update, MPD Blue looks a little more rainbow these days. Illegal immigrants are speaking out more and more. And, the state considers changing the status of dozens of animal and plant species.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is proposing to list the state's iconic moose as a "species of concern," the lowest initial designation on a list of animals and plants seen as at risk of disappearing from the state.

Immigration reform is likely to be in the national spotlight early next year, as the Obama administration and Congress seek to fix a system that's widely viewed as broken. The people at the center of the debate -- some who have been living and working in the U.S. without legal permission for years -- are increasingly making their voices heard. One is a widely known former journalist who will be speaking in Minneapolis tonight.

A Michigan sixth-grader will put aside her nerves and get her ears pierced on her 12th birthday. Two law-enforcement officials will exchange wedding vows at 12:12 p.m. in Pittsburgh's federal courthouse. And gamblers can take advantage of promotions some casinos are using to lure in patrons who want to test their luck.

Nearly 20 years after a Minneapolis police sergeant became the first openly gay officer, the city now has its first openly gay police chief. The number of out lesbian and gay police officers in Minneapolis has increased over the years. Some police officials say the increase in numbers and visibility of gay and lesbian officers has changed the culture of the department.